Yorkshire Phoenix complete double over Lancashire lightning

The Yorkshire Phoenix completed the double over Lancashire Lightning in the Norwich Union National League with an emphatic nine-wicket victory. The match was over by 7.15 when the players should have been enjoying their mid innings break.

After winning the toss and electing to bat the Lightning were blitzed by some explosive bowling from the Phoenix. Matthew Hoggard made the breakthrough when he bowled John Crawley for three in the fourth over. The next three deliveries he forced Flintoff to play and miss each time. Two overs later the Lightning lost their second wicket. Sourav Ganguly turned Hoggard off his legs and straight into the hands of Vic Craven at square leg.

The stage looked set for Neil Fairbrother to play another of his one day match winning innings against the Phoenix but he only scored six when he was back in the changing rooms. He hit Hoggard to Gough at third man and set off for two runs. He turned blind for the second run and was run out by accurate throw from Gough.

Only nine overs had gone and the Lightning were 21 for three. Next man Graham Lloyd fell to the first ball from Craig White when he was caught behind by Blakey. Two balls later and White bowled Scuderi for a duck. In the next over Flintoff edged Hoggard just wide off McGrath at second slip.

Warren Hegg pushed White's slower ball straight to Lehmann at short mid-off and the Lightning were now 40 for six with 30 of their 45 overs left. Ian Austin playing his second match since returning from injury was dropped by Vaughan at first slip off White but the drop was not expensive for he was bowled by Hoggard for two in the next over.

Glen Chapple was anther run out victim in a mix up with Flintoff. Flintoff with the score at 47 for eight decided to attack the Phoenix bowlers. He hit Hamilton for two successive fours. One was a cross-batted slog and the other was a top edge, which went over the slips heads. However he became White's fourth victim when he was bowled for 28 off 44 balls. His innings included four fours.

When Gary Yates pulled Hamilton straight to Vaughan at square leg the Lightning's innings was over for 68 in just in 23.3 overs. White ended with four wickets for 14 in his six overs, while Hoggard bowled his nine overs straight through with four maidens and took three wickets for 15 runs. Lancashire Lightning's score was their lowest ever in the competition.

The Phoenix only needed 53 minutes to knock off the 69 required to win and a ball under 14 overs. To stand a chance of making the match a close one, the Lightning needed to take early wickets and bowl tight. They did get an early breakthrough when Fairbrother caught Craven at point of Austin in the second over. Acting captain Darren Lehmann came in and he was in no mood to take his time to get the runs. When he and Vaughan put on fifty Vaughan had only scored seven of them while Lehmann had hit 40.

Lehmann's hit seven fours in his fifty and he ended the match with a four over square leg. He was unbeaten on 54 with Vaughan not out on 11. It was the third time this season that Yorkshire had beaten Lancashire in a one-day competition. The other victory being in the Benson and Hedges.